Wes Welker Going to Denver

Why would you ever want to leave New England and give up playing for quarterback Tom Brady? To play for quarterback Peyton Manning.

Wes Welker has agreed to terms with the Denver Broncos. The contract is worth $12 million over two years. Welker has spent most of his career with the Patriots with this last season being put under the franchise tag. The team opted not to tag him this time around and tried to reach terms with the 31 year old receiver. They failed and are now trying to pursue other options like Danny Amendola.

I didn't think that Welker could better than Belichick and Brady but Peyton Manning in Denver seems just as good. Manning can make any receiver look good but it's hard to believe that he can make Welker look any better than he already is. Welker has caught over 110 receptions in 5 of his 6 seasons with the Patriots. He's a chain mover that will be valuable for Broncos.

Where does this leaves the Patriots? While something tells me that they will do fine without Welker, their offense is still significantly weakened. Welker was their top receiver with the only player with over a thousand receiving yards in 2012 (1,354). To rely on your injury prone tight ends along with Bradon Lloyd might not be enough. Hopefully New England can find a suitable replacement for Welker or at least come up a better way to distribute the ball more evenly.

P.S. Broncos are not my favorite in the AFC, at least not until the rest of the offseason plays out. Both Welker and Manning have great regular seasons and then drop off a bit in the postseason. I can say they are still the overwhelming favorite in the AFC West, though.